Vexing the Competition
by TheDragonSaver
Summary: When a young bat becomes wrapped up in case involving missing mammals, he'll team up with ZPD's first rabbit officer and a con man fox to solve the case and protect the city from what lies beneath. (Movie AU) Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1: prologue

_October 31_ _st_ _, 2004_

It was another Halloween, and another day in the life of Vergil Vespertilio, a twelve-year-old bat that was the resident 'freak' at school. If it wasn't the fact that his family was one of the few bats that didn't live in the Nocturnal District, then it was because he was a hybrid; specifically, his mother was a fruit bat while his father was a vampire bat. While he looked like a fruit bat, it was the enlarged fangs that gave away his heritage.

As Vergil sat on a bench in Zootopia Central Park, he watched as the other kids ran around in their costumes. He was in costume as well (dressed up as Remus Lupin from the Harry Otter movies) but wasn't invited to play or go trick-or-treating with anyone due to him being so 'different'. The bat sighed to himself as he watched them go about their evening, wishing that someone would at least talk to him.

"Hey, what ya doing?" said a female voice.

Turning to the other side of the bench, Vergil was surprised to find another kid sitting there. She was a pangolin the same age as himself, with a reddish-brown hide and a tan underbelly. Her costume was as Kim Possible from the cartoon of the same name.

"Um, I'm just sitting here, watching as everyone else has fun," Vergil said, a bit awkward as he had never really talked to a girl before.

"Then why don't you join them?" she asked.

"Because I'm the weird kid," the bat said. "Everyone in school judges me, for being a bat, for my parents, for my eyes."

"I think your eyes are cool," the girl said. She skootched closer to Vergil and took off his glasses, which gave her a better look at his heterochromia eyes; the left one blue, the right one red.

"Um, your eyes are nice too," Vergil said, quickly grabbing his glasses and putting them back on.

The pangolin giggled as she blushed a bit. "Please, I just have brown eyes." She then held out a hand. "I'm Pamela, by the way."

"Vergil," the bat said, taking her hand in his wing and giving it a shake.

"You're pretty big for a bat," Pamela said.

"Most fruit bats are actually of a medium size, it's the insectivores that are small," Vergil said. "I, uh, read a lot of books, so I know these things."

"That's cool," Pamela said.

"What are you two doing?" said a scratchy voice.

Waling up to the two was a raccoon wearing a sci-fi space uniform and carrying a toy blaster. His hazel eyes scanned the two as he hopped up on the bench between them, struggling a bit due to his size.

"We're just talking," Pamela said. "I'm Pamela, and this is Vergil."

"Well, I'm Rocky, though everyone calls me Rocket," the raccoon said. "So, are you guys part of the losers' club as well."

"We're not losers," Vergil said, "just different."

"Well, as far as I can tell, the three of us are all outcasts," Rocket said. "I'm a kid that's into sci-fi and mechanics, Pamela here is a mammal that everyone mistakes for an armadillo, and Vergil… well you're just a bunch of things that kids our age will pick on."

"Pretty adult thing to say," Pamela said. Vergil nodded.

"When you grow up with your uncle because you lost your parents, you learn to toughen up quickly," Rocket said.

All three kids sat there, watching as the street lights came on and the time for trick-or-treating was upon them. Suddenly, Pamela got up from her seat and jumped to the ground.

"Come on guys, it's time to go get some sweets!" she said.

"Sure, why not," Rocket said, getting up as well.

Vergil sat there, then got up as well, but not before calling to his newfound friends. "Vex!" he shouted. The two turned to him. "I always said that if I found friends, I wanted to go by Vex."

Pamela smiled. "Then, Vex, let us go into the night and get some treats!"

"And maybe play a few tricks," Rocket said, rubbing his hands together.

"You know your name is the exact same as a comic book character, right?" Vex said to his raccoon friend as they walked into the city.

"Wait, really?"

 **[***]**

 _12 years later_

Vex groaned as his alarm went off, signaling his time to awake. Flipping off of his hammock bed, the now 24-year-old bat sighed as he grabbed his glasses from the nearby dresser. Pulling them over his eyes, he blinked as he got started on his day. Slipping on some black basketball shorts and a white T-shirt, he made sure to grab his badge before heading out into the main part of his apartment.

In the main room of the apartment (which was more of a condo, featuring three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a main living room/ kitchen combo) was where his two closest friends, Pamela and Rocket, were hanging out making breakfast.

"Good to see you up on time for once," Rocket said, passing Vex a cup of coffee to help with the wake up.

"Hey, I'm a narcoleptic, my body sleeps whenever it can," Vex said, "and sometimes that means I sleep extra or not at all."

"Here's your meal," Pamela said, sliding some homemade pancakes onto his plate.

"Thanks Pam," the bat said, giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Your boss called today," Rocket said, "sounded like he needed you at the station for once."

"First of all, Chief Bogo is not my boss," Vex said, taking a sip of his coffee. "As a member of Interpol, I work for the well-being of all animals, not just Zootopia."

"Even though you've been stationed here as a Private Eye for the ZPD," Pamela said, digging into her own plate of pancakes.

"Hey, it was determined a long time ago that Zootopia would always have an Interpol agent in its jurisdiction in case of a national crisis," Vex defended himself. He took a bite of his food. "Second of all, he can wait for me. There's still at least an hour or two before the roll-call at Precinct One."

"Actually, you have about 30 minutes until roll-call," Rocket said.

"WHAT!? Why didn't you wake me sooner?!" the bat exclaimed. Jumping up from his seat, Vex kissed his girlfriend goodbye and gave his best friend as fist bump as he grabbed his bag, wrapped his purple scarf around his neck, and put on his grey jacket as he headed out the door.

When he got outside the building, Vex flew off to catch the nearby bus on his way through downtown Zootopia. As he came closer to the ZPD Precinct, the bat could only imagine how his day was going to go.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **Hello readers! The Dragon Saver is back for another story in the world of Zootopia, but instead of superheroes, this time we're adventuring into the main world we all know and love, though with some new characters and plot twists.**

 **Vex, Pamela, and Rocket are characters from my previous story, but these versions are different interpretations of them. Also, Rocket is not the same one from the Guardians of the Galaxy, he's just a different version of that one.**

 **I hope you enjoy this new take on the Zootopia story!**


	2. Chapter 2: meet the bunny

Arriving at Precinct One, Vex walked into the building to come face-to-face with ZPD's front desk assistant and dispatch officer, Benjamin Clawhauser.

"Oh hi Vex!" Clawhauser said, giving a wave to the bat as he munched down on a donut.

"Sup Ben," Vex replied, giving the cheetah a wave.

"So, Chief called you in today?" Clawhauser asked, resting his head on his hand.

"Yep. It seems that my expertise is needed," the bat said, walking off towards the bullpen. "Catch you later!"

Walking into the bullpen (having to fly up to reach the doorknob), Vex was greeted with the usual sight of all of the ZPD officers, giving a silent greeting to each he past. Going up to the front of the room, he was surprised to find a bunny sitting where he would normally be sitting.

"Hey!" Vex shouted, getting the bunny's attention. "That's normally where I sit."

"Oh, sorry sir, it's just that I needed a seat where I could clearly see the front," she said apologetically.

"It's fine, I understand," Vex replied, "us smaller mammals were not really accommodated for these seats. When can share one for today." Flying up to join her on the chair, Vex blinked as he noticed her purple eyes. "Hey, aren't you that bunny cop from TV earlier this week?"

"Yep! Officer Judy Hopps, ready to make the world a better place!" she announced, giving a straight-standing solute.

"Vergil Vespertilio, Interpol officer in the Zootopia jurisdiction," Vex said, shaking the rabbit's hand. "Everyone calls me Vex, by the way."

As the two exchanged pleasantries, Officer Higgins, a hippopotamus, gave a Ten-hut to call everyone to attention as Chief of Police, Bogo, entered to room. The Cape Buffalo took a stand behind his podium as everyone started to pound on their desks in anticipation.

"Alright. Alright!" Bogo shouted, getting everyone to be quiet. "Sit down." The officers complied, though Judy had to stand to see over the desktop. "I've got three items on the docket. First... we need to acknowledge the elephant in the room." As he said that, everyone turned to the elephant officer. "Francine- happy birthday."

Everyone cheered and clapped for their fellow officer, with Francine giving a tiger officer a noogie.

"Number two; there are some new recruits with us I should introduce, but I'm not going to because I don't care," Bogo continued. "Finally; we have fourteen missing mammal cases - all predators - from a giant polar bear to a teensy little otter, and City Hall is _right_ up my tail to find them! This is priority number one." Officer Higgins handed Bogo files for the day's assignments, the buffalo putting on his reading glasses to properly read the fine print. "Assignments: Officers Grizzoli, Fangmeyer, Delgato; your teams take missing mammals from the Rainforest District. Officers McHorn, Rhinowitz, Wolfard; your teams take Sahara Square. Officers Higgins, Snarlov, Trunkaby: Tundratown."

As all of the assignments were handed out, only Judy and Vex were left in the room as the other officers left for their job.

"And finally, our first bunny; Officer Hopps," Bogo said, looking straight at Judy. "While I would be putting you on parking duty, instead I will be assigning you to go with Officer Vespertilio to go gather information from city hall. If the Mayor wants this case solved so badly, then we'll need him to comply with us as well."

"Yes sir!" Judy said, giving a solute as Bogo just snorted and left the room. The bunny turned to Vex with a smile on her face. "I can't believe it! This is my first big case! We're going to crack it wide open, I know it!"

"Calm yourself, Hopps," Vex said, "all we're doing is talking to the Mayor, if he's even willing to talk." Pulling out his phone, the bat dialed a number, putting it to his ear as the mammal on the other line picked up. "Hello, Bellwether? Yeah, this is Officer Vespertilio of Interpol, do you have a time open for some questions? Uh huh, all right, thanks." He looked to Judy, putting his phone away. "Alright, country girl, let an old pro show you the ropes of the city."

 **[***]**

Going to the mayor's office at city hall, the two cops were brought to Mayor Lionheart's office, where he was waiting for them to arrive.

"Well if it isn't our city's first rabbit officer and our very own Interpol officer," Lionheart said, smiling widely. "What brings you two to my office today?"

"We're here about the missing mammals case, Mayor," Judy stated.

The lion's smile instantly vanished. "I see. Well, I don't think I'll be of much help, considering that no one I know has gone missing."

"There's another reason we came here, Mr.' Mayor," Vex said. "There's reason to believe that all of these cases are connected, due to each one of the missing mammals being of the predator classification. I just thought it would be best for you to be on your guard in case whoever is doing this tries to go after you."

"Well I can assure you that I have security near me at every point during my day," Lionheart stated, gesturing to the two wolf guards at his door. "So, if that's everything you two need, then have Bogo call me up next time he needs something."

As the two officers left, Vex grumbled to himself and pulled out his phone. "Well, I'll call the chief to tell him that we've got nothing new for the case. Judy, why don't you go outside and make sure the cruiser is warmed up."

The bunny nodded as she left with the car keys, leaving Vex to give a call up to the Chief for an update on the situation. After the call, the bat turned to leave, only to encounter a sheep in a dress and glasses.

"Vex!" Assistant Mayor Bellwether exclaimed, pulling the bat into a hug.

"Bellwether, how are you?" Vex asked, pulling out of the hug. "So, how's the valedictorian of our school doing as the assistant mayor?"

"Oh, I mostly just do paper work for Lionheart," the sheep answered, "nothing special. I do have a new boyfriend, though."

"Ah, so you final asked Leodore out, then," Vex teased. "What was it you and the girls called him in High School? 'Lion-Hunk'?"

The sheep blushed furiously from the bat's words. "What? Oh, no-no-no-no-no, I could never ask Lionheart out. He's my boss now, do you know how weird that would be?"

"Don't knock it till you try it," Vex said, "this _is_ Zootopia, after all, where anyone can be anything." He laughed a bit as he started to walk out. "Anyway, you'll have to introduce me sometime to your new boyfriend. See you around!"

As Vex left the mayor's office. He was surprised to find the car still parked without Judy in it. Curious about the situation, the bat got in and used his spare keys to start up the vehicle, pulling out from city hall to go find Judy. When he did find the bunny, she was stuck in cement and had a rather peeved look on her face.

"What happened to you?" Vex asked his partner as he helped to pull her out of the cement.

"I don't want to talk about it," Judy seethed, obviously angered at what had happened to her.

"Well, it's getting late, so how about I take you home for the night?" Vex offered.

Judy just nodded and gave her address to the bat, whom drove her to her apartment and then left to return the cruiser to the station.

 **[***]**

When Vex had returned home, he found Pamela and Rocket sitting on the couch, watching some television.

"Finally, we had to put your dinner in the microwave," Rocket said, not turning away from the screen.

"Thanks," Vex answered his friend with a sarcastic response, "I'm sorry that my job doesn't have a set time to clock in and clock out."

"How was today?" Pamela asked her boyfriend.

"I partnered up with that bunny from the news, Judy Hopps," Vex replied, taking out his meal (which was a Hawaiian personal pizza) and grabbing a soda from the fridge. "She seemed nice, if just a bit too peppy for my liking."

"A bunny as a cop?" Rocket snarked.

"Hey, none of us have conventional jobs for our species," Pamela said defensively. "I'm a freelance reporter for ZNN, Vex is a freaking Interpol Agent, and you're a mechanic and amateur inventor."

"Hey, I'll be professional when someone buys my patent, just you wait," Rocket said.

"Keep telling yourself that," Vex said, "if you want someone to buy your designs, you'll have more luck on the black market than in a peaceful city like Zootopia. Even the cops only use tranquilizers and Tasers."

"I just have to convince the city's department of defense that my weapons are safe for public use," the raccoon said.

"Are they?" Pamela questioned.

Rocket's ears burned with embarrassment. "I'm… working on it," he stated, focusing on the TV and not responding.

"Well, tomorrow I'll be back on the case," Vex said, "and hopefully it will get a lot more interesting."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **The next chapter is here, and Vex has met Judy for the first time. He's not going to be replacing Nick as her partner, but he did need a connection to the Missing Mammals case to work on it.**

 **Also, Vex's relationship with Bellwether will be important for later in the story, so more on that later.**

 **Next time, the case truly begins.**


	3. Chapter 3: fox hunting

The next day Vex decided to sleep in and catch up on his sleep. After all, though he could sleep at any time of the day due to his narcolepsy, it was better for him to have a normal sleeping schedule and take days off in case he needed to stay up longer for an assignment. Fate decided that he wouldn't get to enjoy his nap, however, as his phone went off.

"Huh? Hello?" Vex said, picking up the phone.

"VESPERTILIO!" Chief Bogo shouted, causing the bat to fall out of his hammock bed. "Where were you this morning?"

"Chief, I know there's a big investigation going on, but I need to catch up on sleep every once and awhile," Vex replied, rubbing his eyes and putting on his glasses.

"Well, while you've been dozing off, Officer Hopps has gotten herself in deeper than her pay grade," Bogo said. "Get your tail down to the station to take care of it."

"Alright, alright, don't get your horns bent out of shape," the bat said. "I'll get there as soon as possible.

 **[***]**

At Precinct One, Vex found Judy with Clawhauser, the two looking over a case file.

"Here you go! One missing otter!" the cheetah said, opening the folder and revealing that it only held a photo and a piece of paper.

"That's it?!" Judy exclaimed.

Vex, getting up next to the two, let out a low whistle as he inspected the file. "Oh, this is a sad excuse for a case file. No leads, no witnesses. It would really suck if you betted your career on this." As the bat chuckled, he noticed Judy's ears droop. "Oh crap you betted your career on this, didn't you?"

"Uh, kinda?" the bunny shrugged, leading to Vex face palming. "Okay, let's focus. Last known sighting…"

The bunny looked over all of the details that the file offered, though Clawhauser slurping up his soda in an annoying fashion. Turning to the cheetah, she asked to borrow the bottle and, using it as a magnifying glass to look at a small detail in the photo.

"Pawpsicle…" she said, noticing what the Otter, Emmitt, was holding.

"The murder weapon," Clawhauser commented.

"Do you know what it means?" Vex asked.

"It means I have a lead," Judy said, turning to her partner. "Let's go do a little fox hunting."

 **[***]**

Out in the Downtown area, a fox by the name of Nick Wilde was pushing a stroller holding a "baby" fox. Nick was what is called a "hustler," a person who cons others to make a bigger profit from what he spends. This was the person Judy and Vex were looking for, and the two were pulling up next to the fox in the meter maid mobile that Judy had to use (as Bogo was not going to let her have one of the police cruisers).

"Hi! Hello! It's me again," Judy greeted the fox, pulling up next to him.

"Hey, it's officer Toot-Toot!" Nick said, recognizing the bunny as the one he left in cement the other day.

"Ha ha ho... No. Actually, it's Officer Hopps and we're here to ask you some questions about a case," Judy said, not amused by the fox's sarcasm.

"What happened, meter maid? Did someone steal a traffic cone? It wasn't me," Nick responded, not taking her seriously by her choice of ride.

Judy pulled onto the sidewalk, blocking Nick from walking away.

"Look, we just need to ask a few questions," Vex said, not paying attention to the conversation as he looked over his phone.

"This is important, sir. I think your _ten dollars'_ worth of pawpsicles can wait," Judy said.

Nick scoffed. "Ha! I make two hundred bucks a day, Fluff. Three hundred and sixty-five days a year since I was _twelve_. And time is money. Hop along."

"Dude, we're just looked for an otter," Vex responded. He threw a copy of the photo in Nick's face, the fox catching it and looking at it. "Any lead is helpful."

"Well, I do know everyone in this city, but I also know that somewhere, there's a toy store missing its stuffed animal. So why don't you get back to your box?" Nick responded, looking smug at Judy.

Judy frowned. "Fine, then we'll have to do it the hard way." In the blink of an eye, the bunny had put a parking boot on the stroller.

"Did you… really just boot his stroller?" Vex asked in confusion.

"Nicholas Wilde, you are under arrest!" Judy announced.

The fox leaded on the handle of his stroller. "For what? Hurting your feweings?"

"Felony tax evasion," Judy answered.

As Nick's eyes widened, Vex jumped up from his seat in surprise. "Woah, Judy. That seems like a big leap in logic to arrest someone. I mean, even if he is a hustler, that doesn't mean he doesn't pay his taxes. Where's your proof?"

The bunny then pulled out a few sheets of paper and turned to Nick. "Well, two hundred dollars a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year since you were twelve, that's two decades, so times twenty which is... one million four hundred sixty thousand - I think," she laughed a bit. "I mean I am just a dumb bunny, but we are good at multiplying. Anyway, according to your tax forms, you reported, let me see here, _zero_! Unfortunately, lying on a federal form is a punishable offense. Five years jail time."

"Now wait just a moment. Let me see that," Vex said, taking the paper and looking over them. As he did, his gaze hardened as he noticed something off about the paper. "If anyone is going to be arrested, it'll be you, Hopps, for forging federal documents and blackmail."

"What?" both Nick and Judy said in surprise.

"Look, you didn't even fill out the paper in the same color of ink," the bat pointed out that there were distinctly two different colors used on the form. "Now, while I would like to believe that you just ran out of ink in one pen, I'm more inclined to believe that you couldn't get Nick's actual tax form and fudged a fake one." Vex stared at both of them. "So, we can either arrest both of you, or alternatively we can all play nice and I don't tell anyone about this."

Staring at each other, the bunny and fox looked awkward as the "baby" in the stroller started laughing, standing up and pointing at Nick.

"He hustled you!" Finnick the Fennec fox said in his deep voice. "He hustled you both good! You're a cop now, Nick, so you'll need one of these!" He took off the Junior ZPD officer sticker on his chest and slapped it onto the red fox's shirt pocket. "Have fun working with the fuzz!"

As Finnick walked off laughing, Judy turned to Nick. "Start talking."

He sighed. "I don't know where he is, I only saw where he went."

"That's all we need," Vex said, "Get in the buggy and let's go."

"are you sure you want to come, Fluff?" Nick questioned Judy. "It's not exactly a place for a cute little bunny."

"Don't call me cute. Get in the car," Judy replied, not looking at either of her partners.

As they drove off, Vex turned to Judy. "I know you have some beef with Nick, but that doesn't mean you should blackmail him into cooperating."

"I just… really, _really_ wanted to get back at him for yesterday," the bunny responded.

"Well, try and stay professional next time," the bat said.

 **[***]**

On the hunt for Emmitt Otterton, the trio found their first clue at Mystic Springs Oasis, a naturalist club that the otter frequented. Vex kept the car warm as Nick and Judy went inside for clues, the two returning with the make, model, and license plate for the car that picked up Emmitt on the day he went missing.

"Well, I had a ball. You are welcome for the clue, and seeing as how any moron can run a plate, I'll bid you adieu," Nick said, walking off.

Before he could get far, a recording of his voice played. _"I make two hundred bucks a day, Fluff. Three hundred and sixty-five days a year since I was twelve,"_ the recording said.

Pressing the pause button on her carrot recording pen, Judy looked at the fox smugly. "Actually, as long as I have this, you're still viable for arrest for tax evasion. So, what was it you said? 'Any moron can run a plate?'"

"I can run a plate," Vex stated. The bat pulled out a laptop from his bag and booted up the ZPD database. "Seeing as I have clearance, I can run the plate and find out where our otter is." He then turned to Nick. "Also, with you being a key witness to the whereabouts of a missing mammal, you'll have to stay with us for questioning anyway."

The fox huffed and jumped into the back of the buggy. "Fine, it's not like I had anything going on today anyway," he whined.

"Great! Then we're off to find that limo!" Judy cheered, getting behind the wheel while Vex imputed the license plate into the database.

"Hope you guys packed for snow, because we're off to Tundratown," Vex said.

The trio raced off towards the snowy district, ready to find the missing mammal.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **And the main plot begins!**

 **I noticed this on my second viewing of the movie, but I found it odd that Nick's tax form is filled out in two different colors (re-watch that scene it is). I came to two conclusions: either Nick ran out of ink and had to use a different pen, or Judy forged that form and counted on Nick to spill the beans on his hustling so she could get the confession recorded. If you have an explanation, I'll be glad to hear it as I don't know anything about how tax forms work in the real world.**

 **The story has already diverged by skipping the DMV, which gives our heroes a few more hours to work with. How else will the story change? Only time will tell.**


	4. Chapter 4: through ice and forest

**AN:**

 **To MYTHICBOY (guest): if you're referring to how Vex and Pamela weren't a couple in the previous stories featuring them, I always intended for them to be a couple, I just never got around to it there.**

* * *

It was around the late afternoon by the time Vex, Judy, and Nick arrived in Tundratown, specifically at the Tundratown Limo Service. Fortunately, the service was just about to close when the group got there, giving them time to talk to the security officer about their findings.

"Excuse me sir!" Judy said to the guard, a bored looking wolverine.

"I'm not interested in your cookies, mam," the guard droned in a monotone voice.

"I'm an officer of the ZPD, actually," Judy responded.

Vex came into the conversation by showing the wolverine the license plate number. "We're looking for a limo with this plate as part of our investigation. Can you help us."

The wolverine peered at the plate number, his eyes growing wide as he recognized the number. "Oh no, you do _not_ want to mess with the owner of that car," the guard said in a panic.

"Sir, this is for an investigation," Judy repeated.

"Look bunny, I don't know if you haven't heard, but Mr. Big has been on high alert lately, so if know what's good for you, then scram!" the wolverine shouted, slamming down the window and putting up a 'CLOSED' sign.

"Well great, now we can't go investigate the car," Judy said, crossing her arms and tapping her feet on the ground.

"It's probably for the best," Nick said, smiling with a nervous grin. "Besides, Mr. Big is the most feared crime boss in Tundratown, so crossing him would be a bad idea."

The two were interrupted by the sound of something falling on the other side of the fence. Turning, they found Vex walking into the lot searching for the limo.

"Vex! What are you doing?" Judy questioned.

"Finding the limo, duh," the bat replied.

"Well, I think I've done enough, so I'm just gonna take that recording and go," Nick said, holding out a hand.

Judy sighed and pulled out the pen, only to throw it over the fence.

"Hey!" Nick shouted. "First, you throw like a bunny. Second, you're a very sore loser."

Nick then hopped onto the fence and climbed over, landing in the snow on the other side. He was surprised when Judy appeared next to him (having dug under the fence) holding the pen.

"You know, I think that I just saw a shifty low-life climbing the fence, which gives me probable cause to investigate," Judy said with a grin.

The fox sighed and followed the bunny, catching up with Vex as he found the right limo and was investigating the inside.

"Guys, you'll want to see this," the bat shouted to his companions.

The two ran up to look inside the limo, and were shocked to see the back of the car ruined, with scratches in the interior. The only evidence that they could find was Otterton's wallet.

"Carrots, if your otter was here, he had a very bad day," Nick commented on the situation.

Vex pocketed the wallet and jumped out of the car. "I'll make a call to HQ to tell them about what we've found."

The bat stepped a distance away from the limo and called up HQ, giving Clawhauser the details on the case to relay to the Chief. When he turned around, he saw another limo driving off, with Judy and Nick nowhere to be seen.

"Well, that's not good," Vex said aloud. He dialed another number on his phone, putting it up to his ear. "Hey Rocket? I need you to come pick me up near Tundratown Limo Service. And bring those schematics you have. We have a shrew to meet."

 **[***]**

By the time Rocket came to pick up Vex, it was getting late into the night. The two made their way to Mr. Big's mansion in the high-end neighborhoods of Tundratown. The raccoon pulled up to the front gate, pushing the button on the call box to ring in.

"Who is this?" came the voice from the box, thick with a Russian accent.

"This is Vespertilio. We're here to see Big," Vex answered.

"Big is not seeing anyone at this time," the voice said.

"It's about his driver that had an 'incident' a few weeks back," the bat said.

After a moment of silence, the gates opened, letting the two onto the mansion grounds. When Rocket and Vex entered, they were lead into the ballroom by Big's polar bear guards, where a wedding party was being held for Mr. Big's daughter, Fru-Fru. Nick and Judy, were also there, eating really tiny cake with the crime boss himself.

"Oh, I am _so_ glad that you guys are okay," Vex exhaled.

"Well it turns out that Carrots here saved Big's daughter the other day," Nick explained, "which means that we didn't meet an icy death."

"Ah, Agent Vespertilio," Mr. Big greeted. "Did you come to celebrate my daughter's wedding?"

"I came to make sure my partners were alright," the bat replied.

"You know Mr. Big?" Nick asked.

Vex nodded. "He's on the list of important people under protection of Interpol. While he is involved in some… less than savory dealings, his influence on Zootopia is significant enough to keep him around."

"We all have to let lesser evils happen for the greater good of everyone," Big said. "Now then, I believe that you are here about Emmitt, no?" The shrew took a drink from his cup. "Otterton is my florist. He's like a part of the family. He had something important he wanted to discuss. That's why I sent that car to pick him up. But he never arrived."

"Because he was attacked," Judy said.

"No, _he_ attacked," Big corrected.

"It makes sense," Vex said. "The claw marks in the limo were about the size of an otters, and he was the only mammal in the car besides the driver."

"But why would a florist go crazy like that?" Rocket asked.

"Yeah, he's a sweet little otter," Judy said.

"My child. We may be evolved, but deep down, we are still animals." Big said. Giving a clap, one of the polar bears came over to the group and handed Judy a slip of paper. "You wanna find Otterton, talk to the driver of the car. His name is Manchas. Lives in the Rainforest District. Only he can tell you more."

"Thank you, Mr. Big," the bunny said.

"It's nothing, my child. Find Otterton, and you will have my gratitude," the crime boss replied.

As they turned to leave, Rocket gave a blueprint to one of the bears. "Give this to your 'friends'. I'll be hearing back on payment."

The bear nodded, and the raccoon ran to join up with the others.

"What was that all about?" Nick asked.

"Just getting my inventions to the right market," Rocket said.

 **[***]**

Arriving in the Rainforest District, the group of four arrived at Manchas' house. Vex let Nick and Judy do the questioning while he caught up with his friend.

"How's the car been doing?" the bat asked.

"She's never been better," Rocket replied, patting the side of the jeep. "I got her all tuned to excel on any terrain. Plus, I got a few of my toys in the back." Jumping into the trunk space, the raccoon pulled out a cannon-like weapon that was almost double his size. "This beautiful piece of machinery can stun a full-grown elephant at full charge. Of course, for testing purposes, I have a limiter set to only stun things around the size of a big cat."

As Vex looked over the eclectic stunner in impressment, his ears twitched as he heard nearby rustling. "Just a sec, Rocket," the bat said.

Opening his mouth, Vex sent out a sonic screech, letting his echolocation kick in to see if anyone else was around. The image in his mind he got from the sound was an animal, around the medium size class, in the upper parts of Manchas' house.

"Whose up there?" the bat asked.

Before he could go up there and investigate, there was a commotion from the front of the house, and soon Nick and Judy were running back towards the raccoon and bat with Manchas growling from within the house.

"There's something wrong with Manchas," Judy said.

Suddenly, the panther burst out of his house on all fours, catching the group in his slitted gaze and charging at them. He didn't go far, however, as Rocket took it upon himself to use his electric stunner to… well, stun Manchas into unconsciousness.

"Oh… yeah," the raccoon sighed, hugging his gun and blowing smoke from the tip.

"What even was up with him?" Vex questioned.

"He went savage," Judy said, poking the panther in the face to make sure he was unconscious.

"Let's get him in the car and over to ZPD before he wakes up," Vex ordered, pulling out his phone to make a call. "Chief Bogo? We may have just found a major lead on the missing mammals case. I don't think they went missing; I think they went savage."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **The investigation furthers as Manchas didn't disappear or get captured, but instead he's been taken in by ZPD. How will this affect the investigation? Only time will tell.**


	5. Chapter 5: the savage threat

The next day, after a good night's rest, Vex and Rocket met back up with Judy and Nick to give their eye-witness reports on what had happened with Manchas. Each told the same story, though from different angles, though Vex did mention how he had "seen" another person there that night.

"We checked with all of the nearby house, Vespertilio," Bogo said, "and most of them were in the medium sized classification: ocelots, jaguars, among others."

"Okay Chief, I just thought it might be relevant," the bat said.

"What is relevant is that we have a savage mammal in custody, and not a clue as to how he got in that state," the buffalo said. "Currently, Mr. Manchas is being studied at Zootopia Research Hospital to find a cure. I need you to go to city hall and notify the Mayor of this situation. Hopps, continue trying to find Otterton, though in light of recent events I'll be sending you with Officers Fangmeyer and Wolford to search in the Rainforest District."

"Yes sir!" Judy and Vex stated, giving a clean salute to the Chief.

The two left to go do their jobs, leaving Nick and Rocket in the Chief's office.

"Mr. Wilde, you're free to go," Bogo said. "But you, Mr. Raccoon, need to stay. I have a few questions about that weapon you used last night."

"Good luck with the Chief, Ringtail," Nick laughed, slinking out of the room. He needed to catch up to Judy and get that pen from her, just in case.

Rocket sighed, pulling out his license to carry (which was a rare thing to have in Zootopia, due to the extensive gun laws) as well as his business card. This was going to take a while.

 **[***]**

Arriving at city hall, Vex walked in to find Bellwether talking with a male sheep in what seemed to be a heated argument.

"You were supposed to meet with me last night," the male sheep stated.

"I told you I was busy last night," Bellwether retorted.

"That's not an excuse," he said.

"Excuse me, is there a problem here?" Vex asked, walking up to the two.

The sheep looked at his, the male having a clear look of disgust on his face. "Nothing of your concern, sir."

"Doug, be nice," Dawn chided. "Vex, this is Doug Ramses, my boyfriend."

"Really?" the bat said in surprise. "Well I must say that you're a lucky man. Dawn is one of the sweetest mammals I know."

"Tch," Doug scoffed, "sure, whatever. I'll be talking to you later, Bellwether."

As he walked off, Dawn wiped sweat off of her brow. "Sorry you had to see that. Doug can be… aggressive when he doesn't get his way."

"That sounds like the start of a bad relationship," the bat noted. "Just be careful, Dawn. I don't want you to get hurt. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to talk with the Mayor."

Walking into the Mayor's office, Vex was met with the sight of Lionheart in the phone with someone else.

"Dr. Badger, you're where now?" Lionheart asked. "Okay, okay, OKAY! I'll… think of something to do. I'll call you back later, there's people here." Putting down the phone, the lion turned to face the bat sitting across from him. "Agent Vespertilio! What brings you back so soon?"

"I'm here to tell you about a breakthrough in the missing mammals case," Vex started. "There is very strong evidence to suggest that the mammals went missing not by kidnapping, but by turning savage. One of these savages is currently being held at Zootopia Research Hospital."

"Really?" Lionheart said. "Well then, we must get the situation under control as soon as possible."

"All of the Precincts in the city have been notified and are on the lookout for other potential victims," Vex said. "What I actually came to tell you, Mayor Lionheart, is that it might be for the best to leave the city until this blows over. Whoever is behind this may try and target you, and the last thing the public would need is-"

"-for the mayor to be a savage," Lionheart groaned, falling back into his seat and rubbing the bridge of his muzzle. "Agent Vespertilio, it would look even worse if the Mayor were to abandon his city in a time of crisis."

"Is there something you're not tell me, Mr. Mayor?" the bat asked.

Sighing, Lionheart picked up his phone and dialed a number. "Dr. Badger? Meet me and Agent Vespertilio at Cliffside."

 **[***]**

It was a shock to everyone when the news broke out that Mayor Lionheart had been kidnapping the missing mammals after they went savage to be taken to Cliffside Asylum for containment until a cure had been found. It was Judy Hopps that formally arrested Lionheart, and a press conference was held soon after to discuss the case that had been made public.

"You nervous?" Nick asked Judy, both of them standing in Precinct One. "Okay. Press conference 101. You wanna look smart, answer their question with your own question and then answer that question. Like this: "Excuse me, Officer Hopps, uh, what can you tell us about the case?"" Nick then put on a higher pitched voice. ""Well, was this a tough case? Yes, yes it was.""

"Actually, Wilde, I'll be the one doing the interview," Vex said, walking up to the two. "Bogo though it would be better for a more experienced cop to handle questions. No offence, Judy."

"It's fine," the bunny said with a nod.

"Wish me luck," the bat asked, hopping up on the podium and looking out the awaiting crowd of reporters. Vex smiled as he saw Pamela in the crowd, pen and paper at the ready. "Alright, first question."

"What can you tell us about the animals going savage?" asked a beaver.

"The only connection between them is that they all are of predator classification," Vex answered.

"So predators are the only ones going savage?" asked a sheep reporter.

"No, that's not the case," the bat replied. "These are all isolated incidents, so them all being predators is a coincidence." The bat then paused, thinking of something. "Unless they aren't isolated."

"What are you saying, Officer Vespertilio?" asked a gazelle reporter.

"What I'm saying is that it's not a matter of how the mammals went savage, but _who_ made them go savage." He gained a look of realization. Looking straight at one of the camera's, he said, "Someone is doing something to these predators, making them go savage to cause a rift in our city. Our best doctors are working on a cure, but we need everyone working together to stop this. Whoever is doing this _will_ be brought to justice."

There were a few cheers in the crowd, but everything went wrong when Officer Fangmeyer felt something sting the back of her neck. She let out a grunt of pain as something primal, _savage_ , riled up inside of her.

"Savannah, you okay?" Wolford asked, reaching a hand out.

In response, Fangmeyer growled and swatted her partner away, dropping on all fours and pouncing on the wolf. Instantly, the whole room was in a panic as the other ZPD officers tried to contain their savage co-worker. Judy jumped into the fray as well, giving a solid kick to Fangmeyer's face. The tigress turned and growled at the bunny, pinning Judy with a paw and bringing the other up in preparation to strike the bunny down.

"HOPPS!" Bogo yelled, grabbing Fangmeyer's arm and pulling her off of Judy. The buffalo then pinned the tiger to the ground with his strength, one of the other officers using a tranquilizer to knock Fangmeyer out. "Delgato, get Wolford medical attention. Higgins, Francine, calm the reporters down. Everyone else, fan out and find whoever did this!"

As the ZPD went about their orders, Nick ran over to Judy. "Carrots, are you okay?" the fox asked, reaching a paw out to help her up.

"St-stay away from me!" Judy screamed, backing up from Nick. Clearly, she was still in shock from almost being killed.

The fox's ears went down as he backed off, before turning away from the bunny and running outside.

"Judy, let's get you checked out for injuries," Vex said, picking her up. "There are paramedics outside right now."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **It is said that there are certain points in time that are the same no matter the universe. In Zootopia's case, that would be the press conference going horrible wrong. On the upside though, the ZPD is looking for who is responsible, though the civilians are still scared of predators, seeing as the news just captured an officer of the law going savage.**


	6. Chapter 6: date of danger

It had been a few hours since the press conference had ended in disaster, and Vex and Pamela were sitting in Officer Wolford's hospital room to check on him. The wolf won't have any career-ending injuries, thankfully, but he would be on medical leave to recover from what he did received.

"Hope you get better, Maxwell," Vex said, giving his blessing as he left the room. Outside, the bat ran into Judy and Nick, the two of them standing on opposite sides of the hall and not speaking or looking at each other. "Okay you two, we've all had a stressful day. How about we get some coffee and talk over what the heck just happened."

Neither fox nor rabbit said anything, but both nodded and headed out with Vex to a local coffee shop. Tensions hadn't risen too much, but there was a feeling of stress in the air as some of the larger prey gave looks to a bunny sitting with two predators- well, a pred and a half-pred. Each of them ordered a coffee and sat at a table, silence permeating between them until Nick spoke up.

"Are you afraid of me, Carrot?" the fox asked.

Judy looked up in surprise. "What? Nick, why would I be afraid of you?"

"Really, you're not afraid of me. Then what was that reaction to me back at the ZPD?"

"Okay Nick, back off a bit," Vex said. "Judy had almost been mauled by a tiger, so she was clearly in a state of shock at the time."

"No, that's not it- at least, not all of it," Judy sighed. "When I was nine, I was attacked by a fox after defending some other kids." She unconsciously rubbed the cheek that was scratched all those years ago. "That was the day that I vowed to prove him wrong and become a police officer."

"Well I can assure you that I'm not like that jerk," Nick said.

"I know, I know, I just froze up in that moment," the bunny said apologetically.

"It was a high-stress situation," Vex stated, looking through his laptop for news updates. "It could have happened to anyone."

"Hey, I've been wondering- are you a predator or a prey?" Nick asked.

"Well, my father is a vampire bat while my mother is a fruit bat," Vex explained. "Primarily I got the fruit bat genes, but I have the enlarged incisors and bloodletting enzymes of a vampire bat." He shuttered. "Before you ask, I can drink blood, but I tend to pass out if I drink too much."

"So, have you had to… do that?" Judy asked.

"Only once, and it was to help stop severe bleeding for a mammal that was injured," Vex said.

The three sat there, sipping their coffee as the nearby TV continued to relay information on the press conference.

"Where do we go from here?" Nick asked.

"First, we figure out how mammals are turning savage," Vex said. "From the information I could get from Wolford, Officer Fangmeyer grabbed the back of her neck before she went savage. From that we can assume that it's a biological weapon, but also something that can be absorbed through the skin as there was no dart to inject directly into the bloodstream."

Just then, Judy got a call on her phone. "Hello? Clawhauser, what is it? Oh, okay, I'll be there as soon as possible." She turned to her two companions. "Chief Bogo wants to talk to me and make sure I'm okay."

"I'll come with you," Nick offered. "Just to make sure you're safe."

"Alright, I'll see you guys later," Vex said, waving the two off. He turned back to his laptop. "Who is behind all of this?"

 **[***]**

A week passed with no new leads, the ZPD working overtime to try and find the culprit. Vex was taking his time to run what facts they did know through the Interpol database to see if it was an international terrorist, but none of the possible suspects were an exact match.

"This doesn't make any sense!" the bat exclaimed, startling his roommates. "There's no person on record with a similar rep as what this savage case is. Heck, I'm surprised Interpol doesn't have any notable bio-terrorists that have done something even remotely similar to this."

Pamela walked over to her boyfriend, shutting the laptop in his face. "Vergil Vex Vespertilio. You've been too focused on this case. Heck, I haven't seen you sleep once."

"I've slept," Vex said defensively. "I have so gotten some slleeeeppp…" The bat snored as his Narcolepsy kicked in, making him involuntarily fall to sleep. Pamela sighed and snapped her fingers in his face. "What? Um, alright, I haven't slept in a while, okay?"

The pangolin smiled, then held out the keys to her car. "Well then, now that that's over with, I have set up a double date with Dawn and her boyfriend, and I would hate to keep the Mayor waiting."

"Okay, but I'm sleeping on the way over," Vex replied, getting up from his seat and going to change into something more formal.

The two were soon on their way to Sahara Square, where their date was to be held at one of the high-end restaurants in the city. Overlooking the desert landscape, the stars shown down on the open-air rooftop where Bellwether and Doug sat, waiting for Pamela and Vex to show up.

"I don't like this, Dawn, too many people," Doug said.

"Don't be like that, I have guards at every entrance. If someone tries to get me, they'll take care of it," Dawn reassured.

"Dawn!" Vex called, pulling up a seat for Pamela before getting into his own. "Glad to see you safe in these dire times."

"Good to see you as well," Bellwether replied, shaking his wing.

The bat extended a wing to Doug, but the sheep just grunted and refused the shake. Vex frowned, but picked up a menu to order. Everyone did so as well, Dawn ordering a salad, Doug a Caesar salad, Pamela ordering a bug lasagna, and Vex a bug casserole with a fried fruit side. As they ate, Vex couldn't help but notice the look of distain on Doug's face.

"So, Doug, what is it you do for a living?" the bat asked.

"Oh, Doug is a science teacher in the Meadowlands," Dawn replied. "We met way back in high school and met by coincidence a few months ago."

"Well, I'm a reporter for ZNN. Pamela Goliero," she introduced herself.

"So, Mr. Vespertilio, you're dating this armadillo?" Doug asked, finally saying something. "Huh. Didn't take you for one to date a pred."

"Doug!" Dawn exclaimed, giving a light slap to the sheep's arm.

"Actually, she's a Pangolin," Vex corrected. "And second, pangolins are insectivores, so while they do consume meat, their ancestors didn't eat prey."

"A pred is still a pred," Doug said.

"Okay! Doug, why don't you go get a waiter while we finish up," Dawn interjected, shoving her boyfriend out of his seat. When the sheep left, Bellwether slumped into her chair with a groan. "Doug, why are you like this with all of my friends?"

"Boyfriend troubles?" Pamela asked.

"Worse, work troubles," Dawn sighed. "I've been so overworked as the mayor, and Doug has been locked up in his lab whenever he's off of work."

"Wait, a lab?" Vex asked, perking up from his seat. "What _kind_ of science does he teach?"

"Oh, he's a biology teacher," Dawn said.

Vex went silent, processing the information he had just been told. "Maybe I should hang out with Doug some time, get to know each other."

"That sound's perfect!" Dawn said. "Actually, his lab is in the downtown area, not far from where you live."

"That's great Dawn, but we've got to go," Vex said, taking Pamela by the hand and rushing out of the restaurant.

"Vex, what's going on?" Pamela asked as they got to their car, the bat locking the doors and looking around.

"Okay, don't freak out, but I think Doug is behind the savage crisis," the bat said.

"Wait? That's crazy."

"Hear me out. The savageness is caused by a biological factor, and Doug is not only a biology scientist, but he has his own lab. What school teacher has a lab." He put his wings around Pamela's hands. "Look, I know this sounds crazy, but it's the only lead I have. Plus, Doug has shown a bias against predators _and_ is boyfriend to Dawn. If anything, I bet he set up Lionheart to get Dawn in power."

"So she's being played," Pamela stated. She sighed. "I can't say I fully believe you, but I'll try to help you. Let's go home."

Taking their car home, the two came to their apartment and knocked on the door. When Rocket didn't reply, Vex unlocked the door to get in, the house strangely quiet and dark.

"Rocket? You home, buddy?" Vex called.

There was a scratching from the raccoon's room, so the two approached cautiously, Vex handing Pamela a Taser off of the nearby counter. When the bat threw open the door, Rocket leapt out and lunged at Pamela, the pangolin instinctively curling up in a ball to protect herself. Vex jumped onto his savage friend, pinning him down so he couldn't move.

"Rocket, man, I really don't want to hurt you," Vex said, struggling to contain his savage friend. "I hope you can forgive me for this," the bat said. With a breath, he closed his eyes and sunk his fangs into the raccoon's neck, drawing blood until the raccoon passed out.

"Oh my god, you killed him," Pamela said, uncurling at looking at the scene.

"Not dead, passed out," Vex corrected. "Bat saliva has the same enzymes that they use on needles for blood drawing. Get poked to many times and you pass out."

"Oh good, I would be really mad at you if you killed him," the pangolin sighed in relief.

Vex wiped the blood from his muzzle, grabbed a cup of water to wash out the blood taste, and pulled out his phone to call the chief. "Bogo, it's Vespertilio. I got a savage contained at my place. It's Rocket." He then looked over at Pamela, pain eminent in his eyes. "I'll be bringing him over to Zootopia Research Hospital, so tell them to get a room ready."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **The plot keeps thickening, and Vex now has a personal stake in the case. Will they be able to find the culprit in time?**


	7. Chapter 7: get the crew together

**AN: to those that were surprised by the ending of the last chapter, I'm glad I was able to catch you off guard!**

* * *

At Zootopia Research Hospital, Vex and Pamela spent all night waiting for a verdict on Rocket's condition.

"As we feared, Mr. Raccoon has come under the same affliction as the other savage preds," the doctor, a zebra, said.

"Mammal. Savage _mammal,_ " Vex corrected.

The doctor coughed nervously. "Right. Mammals. You can see him if you want, but he's just like the others."

Vex nodded, and the bat and pangolin were led into the hazard area, where the savage mammals were held behind glass in separate rooms. The two looked into Rocket's room, where the raccoon had been stripped down to his pants and was scurrying around the room, scratching the walls and glass. Pamela had to turn away, not wanting to see her friend like this.

"Not a pretty sight, is it?" said a voice that was tired and held pain behind it.

Turning around, Vex was surprised to see a certain fox standing near one of the other cages. "Nick, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me," Nick said with a nonexistent smile.

"Why are you here?" Pamela asked.

"You're not the only one to lose a friend," the fox replied, moving over so the other two could look into the glass.

The two saw a fennec fox in the room, in the same state as Rocket.

"By Aslan, Nick I'm so, so sorry," Pamela said, patting the fox on the arm.

Vex didn't say anything, but his face hardened. The bat turned to the doctor, flying up and landing on a light fixture to be at the same height. "I want Rocket and Mr. Wilde's friend taken care off, no exceptions. In fact, you should be putting all of your effort into helping these mammals out, no matter the species." Getting down from his vantage point, Vex gestured to Nick and Pamela. "You two, we're going to make this right, but we'll need Judy to help us. She's on vacation in Bunny Burrow, so we're heading there."

"Why don't you call on some of the other ZPD officers?" Pamela asked.

"Because Interpol doesn't have to abide by Zootopia law," Vex said darkly.

 **[***]**

The trio took Pamela's car to Bunny Burrow, looking to find their rabbit friend. They didn't have to look far, as Judy was standing behind her family's produce stand.

"Carrots!" Nick called, hopping out of the car and running up to the stand.

"Judy, do you know this fox?" Mrs. Hopps asked.

"He's my friend," Judy replied. The rabbit went to the other side of the stand and hugged the fox. "Mom, dad, this is Nick Wilde."

"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Hopps," Nick said, extending his hand to the couple.

"We can worry about introductions later," Vex said. "Right now, Judy, we need you back in the city."

"What's the rush?" she asked.

"Rocket and Finnick have been… they've been…" Pamela tried to say.

"Savage," Judy finished. She sighed and turned back to her parents. "We've been working a case on missing mammals, but it turns out they didn't go missing; thy went savage."

"My goodness," Bonnie Hopps exclaimed.

"Your daughter has been a great asset on this case," Vex said. He extended a wing. "Agent Vespertilio, Interpol Officer." He turned to Judy. "We have a lead on who might be behind this, and I want you to be there for the arrest."

"Okay, I understand," Judy said.

"Hey kids! Don't you run through that _Mendicampum holicithius_!" Stu Hopps yelled at some of his kids nearby.

"Wow, Mr. Hopps, that sounds like a Scrabble winning word there," Nick said sarcastically.

"It's just the name of the flowers we use to keep bugs off the plants," Judy explained.

"If it's a natural pesticide, why do you need to keep the kids away? I doubt it's poisonous," Vex stated.

"I don't like the little ones going near 'em on account of what happened to your Uncle Terry," Stu said.

"Yeah, Terry ate one whole when we were kids and went completely nuts," Bonnie added.

"He bit the dickens out of your mother."

The group froze at that.

"A plant that makes you savage when eating it…" Vex said aloud.

"Savage? Well, that's a strong word, but it _did_ hurt like the devil," Bonnie replied.

"Well, sure it did. There's a sizeable divot in your arm. I'd call that savage!" Stu said.

Vex hopped into the car, revving the engine as Pamela took the wheel. "Wilde, Hopps! Get in the car! We've got some sheep to sheer!"

"Oh, do you have to go now?" Bonnie whined.

"Sorry mom and dad, but it's official ZPD business," Judy said. "Thank you!"

"Glad to meet you two," Nick said, giving a lazy wave.

"Be careful with our daughter, Mr. Wilde!" Stu called. "Anything that happens to her is on you!"

"Dad, he's not my-" Judy tried to say, only for Nick to steal a kiss from her. "WILDE!" the bunny screamed, jumping into the car and slugging the fox in the stomach.

"OMPH! Totally worth it for your face, Carrots," Nick said with his usual tone.

The bunny pouted with her ears burning (not wanting to admit that the kiss felt nice) as the car raced off back to Zootopia.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **The pieces have fallen into place and ships have been teased. It's time for the final clues to be had and a crook to be arrested.**


	8. Chapter 8: a sheep-ish encounter

Heading back into the city, the group made a beeline to location of Doug's lab, courtesy of Bellwether. Pulling up to the lab, they got out of the car, with Vex popping the trunk and pulling out some of Rocket's gadgets to give to others.

"Alright, here's the plan," the bat stated. "Nick, you take the shock tranquilizer and stand guard out here in case we have to get back in the car. Judy, take my spare tranquilizer gun. You'll be my ears as your hearing is better than mine without echolocation. Pam, I want you to keep that Taser close. I can't afford to lose another friend."

"Well do our best," Judy said.

"I'll just keep the car warm," Nick said.

The group made their way up to the building, all of them on edge in case someone tried to attack them. Vex knocked on the door, and when no one answered, he let himself and the others in. To their surprise, the building was completely vacant, with only a table at the far back.

"What?" Judy asked. "This makes no sense. Why would Bellwether lie to us?"

"Maybe she's in on the whole thing," Pamela speculated. "I mean, that's the only reason I can come up with."

Suddenly, Judy's phone went off with a call from Nick. "Hey guys, I think that sheep you're looking for just went down into the subway tunnel nearby."

"We'll be right there," Judy replied. She turned to Vex. "I want you to go to the Mayor's office and figure out what's going on. Nick and I will handle the subway."

"Alright, just be careful. We can't afford either of you going savage," Vex stated.

 **[***]**

Arriving at City Hall, Vex and Pamela barged into the Mayor's office with little fanfare, startling Bellwether and making her drop her glasses.

"Oh, Vex! You startled me," Bellwether said, picking up her glasses from the floor. "What brings you here today?"

"Cut the pleasantries, Bellwether. We both know what you did," Vex shouted.

The sheep froze. "Oh… really? And-and what is it you think I did?"

"It's the reason you lied to us about Doug," Pamela said, crossing her arms and glaring.

Bellwether paled. "Um, well, you see, I…" As the two got closer to her, the sheep backed into her chair, curling up in a fetal attempt to defend herself. "Okay, okay! You got me! Doug isn't really a scientist!"

Vex froze, his face turning to confusion. "Wait, what?"

Bellwether looked at him. "I lied about his job. He's just a teacher. He just wanted to seem cooler to my friends."

Pamela turned to Vex, the bat just shrugging as they turned their attention back to the mayor. "Dawn, Doug _does_ have a lab. In fact, we're pretty sure he's the one behind the savage crisis."

The sheep looked baffled, but then pulled out some papers from her desk. She made a motion for Vex and Pamela to come over to the chair to see what she had.

"Ever since I became assistant mayor, I've been giving Doug some of my paycheck to help with his expenses. Being a teach doesn't pay much you know. If what you two are saying is true, then it would explain why he keeps requesting that I buy him 'replacement' equipment for his classroom."

"First, the school should be paying for that, and if not, then maybe you should try to get funding better for Zootopia School District," Vex said. "And second of all, it seems that both of your theories were correct; Bellwether is technically in the on crisis, but she's been played as well."

"Am I going to be in trouble for this?" Dawn asked… well, sheepishly.

"Yes, _but_ if you help us, I can work on getting you a reduced sentence," Vex explained. His phone then buzzed, making the bat take it out to see who was calling.

On the screen was Judy and Nick, both of them seeming to be in a subway car. "Vex, glad you picked up! Nick and I found where they were making whatever is turning the mammals savage. Turns out to be a serum made out of Night Howlers, those flowers my parents use."

"Doug also wanted an abundance of those," Dawn muttered.

"Anyway, were secured the lab and even have some of his lackeys held up." Judy moved her phone to show two sheep tied up, with Nick mock posing with his gun in the background. "Doug is nowhere to be seen, though."

"Alright Judy. We got the mayor over her and she's willing to help us out. Call Clawhauser to get some assistance in arresting those guys over there, and we'll meet back with you soon." As Vex hung us, he turned to Bellwether. "Alright, mayor, where would Doug go if he had been found out?"

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **We're reaching the climax of the story, with only Doug left to keep the savage crisis afloat. Can our heroes figure out his end-game before the sheep strikes?**

 **For those wondering, I have a head cannon that Bellwether is** ** _not_** **the one behind the plan. In my head, Doug is the true brains behind the operation, and Bellwether just provided funds and protection for the Night Howler operations. As seen in this story, Bellwether wasn't even fully in on the plan or aware that it was going on, with Doug planning on bringing her in on it after some time.**


	9. Chapter 9: savage concert confrontation

With Doug's henchman arrested and the lab confiscated, Nick and Judy met up with Vex and Bellwether, Pamela staying behind to cover the story for ZNN.

"So, here's what we know," Judy explained. "Doug had a hit list of mammals that could be easily taken out, along with a contingency plan in case he had to abandon his lab before getting in contact with Bellwether."

"Turns out he was going to bring you in on the operation eventually, but we caught he before he could do so," Nick commented.

"Would I have done that?" Bellwether asked.

"Well considering that power corrupts, and with how forceful Doug is with you, it wouldn't be a surprise if in some alternate scenario he was able to convince you to take over as head of this whole scandal," Vex speculated.

"Anyway, his contingency was to dart predators in a major populated area, with could be any number of places," Judy continued.

"Hm… There's only one place I can think of that could lead to a major panic," Vex said. "Who's the one person that's been fighting for equality for both predator and prey, as well as a figure that if taken out could divide the city even more than it already is."

"…Gazelle," Judy said in realization.

With that, everyone jumped into Vex's car (Judy taking the wheel) and headed over to where the pop star would be holding her concert.

 **[***]**

"So Vex, I have to ask, why do you have stakes in this case?" Bellwether questioned. "I mean, I know your friend is one of the victims, but there seems to be something else."

The bat turned to her, then sighed. "It all started when I was around 6 or so. It was Halloween, and some of the local bullies thought it would be funny to trick young naïve Vex into a coffin and lock him there for an entire night, just because he was part vampire bat. By the time someone found me, I was a crying mess, but the fox that helped me out was able to calm me down."

Nick turned to look at Vex. "That fox wouldn't have happened to be wearing a western outfit, would he?"

"Wait, that was you?" Vex asked. He shrugged. "Huh, small world. Anyway, while I've held a bias against Halloween ever since, I realized that the reason those kids did that is because they were afraid of something they didn't understand. I vowed to never let what a person is get ahead of who they are when you know them. And all Doug is doing is making mammals afraid of what a person is, so me taking him down is to prove that his way of thinking is not the right way."

Bellwether nodded, running the words through her head in contemplation.

"We're here," Judy said, pulling up to the Zootopia Concert Stadium. "It looks like it's all sold out, though."

"I'm with Interpol, so I should be able to get us in no problem," Vex said. "What we need is a plan."

"Luckily, making things up as you go is my specialty," Nick said. "Carrots, you're going to be the one who takes this maniac down. Ms. Mayor, you're going to distract him so Carrots can do the said taking down."

"And me?" Vex asked.

"You can be our eyes in the skies, figuratively and literally," the fox replied.

"Alright. I know my way around machines, so I'll see if I can find any cameras to use as well," the bat said.

"Hey wait, where are you in this plan?" Judy questioned.

"I was going to just enjoy a free concert, but if you insist, I'll help you out, Fluff," Nick sighed, though his tone was joking in nature.

 **[***]**

As the teams made their way into the concert, Vex headed to the security room to watch over the cameras. After showing his badge to the guard there, the bat pulled out his phone to call Judy.

"Okay Hopps, I'm on the cameras. So far, no sign of Doug," Vex said.

"Alright, we'll be on the lookout," the bunny replied.

The bat went at it, combing over each camera in search of the sheep. After not seeing anything, he noticed what looked like a medium-sized mammal in a garish yellow jumpsuit.

"Dawn, Doug won't happen to be the sheep with a horrible fashion sense, would he? He should be on the upper level to your right," Vex said.

Bellwether turned, peering over in the direction given and spotting the sheep. "Yep, that's him alright," she replied.

"Okay, I'm going to go apprehend him. Nick and Judy, make your move, the concert has almost started," Vex said, hanging up and rushing out of the room.

When the bat got out there, Doug was already setting up in the rafters to shoot one of Gazelle's tiger dancers.

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to drop the weapon," Vex said, holding out his badge. "Put the gun down and we can settle this peacefully."

Doug responded by turning his aim on Vex, the bat dodging the serum pellet and tackling Doug off of the scaffolding. The two tumbled for a bit before Doug grabbed a rope, saving his fall while Vex just flapped his wings to land safely. At that point Judy, Nick, and Bellwether arrived to help with the confrontation.

"End of the, Mr. Ramses, give up now and surrender the weapon," Judy stated.

"I don't think so, rabbit," Doug retorted.

"Doug please, you don't have to do this," Bellwether pleaded.

"I did all of this for you, Dawn. I made those preds savage, forced the mayor to get arrested, and even helped to set you up as Mayor. We could have ruled this city and let the many have dominance over the few," Doug said. He held out a hand. "You can still join me and we can forget this little hiccup."

"You… You were just using me for my position!" Bellwether yelled. "I thought we could work, but now I see you don't really love me, or even care about me. If it wasn't me, you would have found someone else to help you get power. Lionheart may have been neglectful and mean to me, but at least he wanted to make this city better! You just want anarchy to reign."

"I bet he would fore Zootopia back to when TAME collars were a thing," Nick remarked.

Doug scowled. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Dawn. But, if you won't be with me, then I have no use for you." With a quick draw, the sheep shot Nick square in the chest with the serum.

"NICK!" Judy and Vex exclaimed.

As the fox fell to the ground in pain, Bellwether decided to take action and managed to take the gun away from Doug, with Vex delivering a Taser to the side and knocking the sheep out.

"We need to contain Nick," Vex said, hearing the fox growl.

"Heh, you're too late, the bunny is as good as dead," Doug muttered lying on the ground as he fell into unconsciousness.

"Nick… Please," Judy said, slowly backing away as the fox crept towards her, growling at the bunny.

"Judy, you need to use your tranquilizer on him," Vex said, coming over to help.

Before the bunny cold pull her weapon out, Nick pounced on her, Judy letting out a scream as Vex pulled out his Taser. To their surprise, though, Nick didn't immediately maul the bunny, instead seeming to resist just as his jaws went around her neck.

"…Nick?" Judy asked, opening her eyes to see the fox staring down at her.

"Amazing," Vex said, getting close to help Judy up, "it seems that by Doug aiming for Nick's chest, his clothes absorbed most of the serum, meaning he only has a tiny bit of the serum running through him."

"So, he's in a lucid state?" Judy asked.

"Kind of like that, yeah," Vex replied. "He's still savage, but he can recognize us as not food." Vex then took Judy's tranquilizer and fired a dart into Nick's side. "Sorry Nick, but you're going to be much more compliant with the doctors when you're not savage."

"Let's get these two to ZPD," Judy said. "It's been a long day."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **Doug has been captured, hurray! But who will be the new mayor, will Nick pull through (of course he will), and where will the finale take us? Find out in the final chapter, next time!**


	10. Chapter 10: wrapping up loose ends

With Doug behind bars and the cure being worked on, it took less than a month to fully cure the savage crisis. Nick, Rocket, Finnick and the other savages were sent into the normal part of the hospital to recover their normal physiological skills and to meet with their friends and family.

"Ugh, my head," Rocket moaned, waking up. "What the… heck happened to me?"

"Nice job on the self-censorship there, Rocky," Vex said, coming up to his friend.

"Vex!" Rocket exclaimed, giving a fist bump to the bat. "I don't know what happened, but it's good to see you."

"You went savage and Vex had to knock you out," Pamela replied.

"Wait, what?" Rocket said in confusion.

The friends laughed after that, with Vex helping Rocket out of the bed to get dressed and head home. On the way out, the bat saw Judy with a recovering Nick, making him smile as friends were reunited. Of course, he wasn't going to let them off so easily.

"Make out already, you two!" he shouted, running away as the two blushed furiously and Judy ran off to chase the laughing bat.

 **[***]**

At Zootopia County Jail, Dawn Bellwether and Leodore Lionheart were brought into a room where Agent Vex Vespertilio was waiting for them.

"So, the reason I called you two here is in regards of your allegations," Vex started. "Lionheart, you kidnapped savage mammals and held them against their will, knowingly keeping the crisis from the public. On the other hand, you kept them out of harm's way and protected the city, even if it was an underhanded tactic."

"Doing the right thing for the wrong reasons," the lion replied.

Vex continued. "Dawn, while you didn't do anything that bad, you did inadvertently fund a bioterrorist and were a part of a government coup."

"I'm sorry," the sheep muttered.

"So, here's what we've come up with as your punishment," Vex said, throwing a folder onto the table. "You two will be allowed to finish up your term as mayor and assistant mayor, but will be barred from running for an elected position in the future, _and_ will have to do community service as compensation for being bailed out of jail. Understand."

Both looked at the bat in surprise, but nodded in response.

"Good! Now then, let's get you all out of here," the bat said, clapping his wings together. "Lionheart, your free to go outside to fill out your forms. Bellwether, stay here." The lion left the room, leaving the bat and sheep in the room alone. "How are you feeling, Dawn?"

"I'm glad that I get a second chance, but I honestly feel like I don't deserve it," Dawn admitted. "I think I've done more harm than good."

"Don't feel that way. This is Zootopia, where anyone can be anything, and that means we all get a chance to change who we are," Vex reassured her.

"I think I can try that," Dawn said with a smile.

 **[***]**

A week after the crisis was fully and truly over, Gazelle held a benefits concert for all of the families affected by the savage crisis. Vex, Pamela, and Rocket met up with Nick and Judy to go to the concert, all five of them formally meeting together for the first time.

"So, it's been one heck of a ride," Vex commented.

"Next time, I want to be a bigger part of it," Rocket lamented. "To be fair though, I did get a good deal on selling my weapons thanks in part to Mr. Big."

"And I got to headline the whole story!" Pamela exclaimed.

"I'm just glad that we saved the city," Judy said.

"Correction: _We_ saved the city," Nick commented. "And you will be happy to know that we'll get to do it more often, Carrots, as I applied to the police academy this morning."

"Nick, that's great!" Judy said, pulling the fox into a hug.

"So, are they…?" Rocket asked Vex.

"Probably," the bat replied.

"And are either of them…?"

"Oh, they are both clueless to the other," Pamela scoffed.

They didn't have much time to talk, however, as the concert started with Gazelle and her tiger dancers taking the stage, the pop star singing her hit song, "Try Everything." As the song goes on, we see scenes of each of the main cast doing what they usually do.

 **Elijah Wood as Vergil "Vex" Vespertilio**

We see vex sitting at his computer, taking a sip of coffee as he works hard on something.

 **Tiya Sircar as Pamela Goliero**

The scene shifts to show that on the screen of his computer is Pamela, the pangolin giving a news report on the status of the city.

 **Bradley Cooper as Rocky "Rocket" Raccoon**

Cutting over to a garage, we see Rocket hard at work on fixing up a van. When he finishes, it's revealed to be Finnick's van, the fennec giving the raccoon some money before driving off.

 **Jennifer Goodwin as Judy Hopps**

At the ZPD, we see Judy having an animated with Clawhauser, the cheetah gushing about something, most likely Gazelle.

 **Jason Bateman as Nick Wilde**

A paw holds up a pawpsicle, revealing Nick in a police uniform. Judy smiles and hops down to hug the fox, Nick only giving her the frozen treat with a smile as the two head over to the bullpen.

 **Jenny Slate as Dawn Bellwether**

At City Hall, Bellwether is packing up her stuff in boxes, ready to move back to her previous room. When she sees a picture of Doug, she slams it down and chucks it in the garbage.

 **JK Simmons as Leodore Lionheart**

When Dawn tries to pick up the boxes, a larger figure picks them up for her. It's Lionheart, the lion giving Dawn a smile and showing her a new office just for her. She won't be having to work in the boiler room from now on. The sheep smiles and gives Lionheart a hug.

 **Rich Moore as Doug Ramses**

Finally, in Zootopia Penitentiary, when see Doug, whom is watching the Gazelle concert on the TV. He angrily throws his food tray at the screen, but some other bigger animals soon surround. Seems they weren't too happy about what the sheep tried to do to the city.

* * *

 **Author's Note**

 **This was fun, but I think I've had my fair share of writing in the Zootopia world for a bit. I might return with another story someday, but I have other ideas on the brain. Speaking of which, how about we see where Vex goes next?**

* * *

 **[***]**

Sleeping in his bed, Vex dreams silently after a long and tiring case. He's interrupted, however, by his phone going off.

"WHAT? Oh, hello, this is Vex speaking," the bat replies sleepily.

"Agent Vespertilio, this is Agent Frost of Interpol," came a voice on the other end, having a slight Russian accent.

"Oh, Frost, what's up? How's life with Agent Savage going?" Vex replied.

"We can talk about our love lives later, Vespertilio, we have bigger fish to fry," Frost answered. "There has been recent activity near Interpol headquarters in Paris, which leads us to believe that _He_ might be back."

"He? You don't mean…"

"Just get out to Paris as soon as possible," Frost said, hanging up on the phone.

"Well, I did need to get out of the city anyway," Vex muttered to himself.

Grabbing his laptop, the bat pulled up the case file he would be working with, after buying himself a ticket to Paris. The only thing on the file besides some documents is what seems to be a calling card with a blue raccoon head on it.


End file.
